The Young Grow Up on 'After the Crash'

Matthew Everett

9:21 AM, Aug 4, 2010

The Young

After the Crash

The Young's 2008 EP Nylon April was equal parts grand and grandiose, an ambitious and promising debut that demonstrated an all-too-apparent affinity for Coldplay. On After the Crash, the base of the band's songwriting has shifted from piano to guitar, and the bigger arrangements help. The Young haven't completely come out from under the spell of early-'00s Britrock (Radiohead's another noticeable influence), but the sheer drama of these songs—the general structure of each one builds from plaintive to epic—and the polish of nearly a year of recording and production give After the Crash a big and surprisingly muscular impact.